*NOTE: Unranked schools on this list don’t have on-campus living options, so on-campus costs are not available.

It's a versatile major, teaching skills that are in demand well beyond graduation and have significant value in the real world.

If you're a problem solver at heart who loves math and science, then engineering is definitely your calling. Engineers take scientific and mathematical principles and apply them to real-life situations to determine the best possible outcome(s); tinkering at its finest. And PayScale's College ROI Report shows you where your educational dollars will be best spent, letting you tinker away at one of the nation's best value colleges for engineer majors. Take your pick!

Always coming in high on the list of best value schools for engineering majors is the University of California, Berkeley ("Cal"). Cal is the only university to consistently rank in the top three or four on the College ROI Report for multiple majors and ranking third in the world for best value colleges for engineering majors. Just so you know, you can thank UC Berkeley engineers for helping build iconic structures such as the Hoover Dam and Golden Gate Bridge.

As the saying goes, "Everything's bigger in Texas," and this includes the expected return on investment provided by one of the state's top private research academies. Coming in high on the College ROI Report for engineering majors is Rice University's George R. Brown School of Engineering. In addition to Rice nearing the top of the list of best value colleges for engineering majors, the university and its faculty also put a great deal of emphasis on encouraging female students to pursue engineering degrees through a variety of programs and organizations offered by the university.

Rice University is a smart investment based on the rankings from the College ROI Report for engineering majors, but it comes with a private-school price tag. Cal gives you a bit more bang for your educational buck, regardless of what major you choose -- apparently, chart-topping is Cal's thing.